Walking the Ten Thousand Daos

Chapter 72: Preparations

While Li Qi was muttering to himself and couldn't help but sigh with emotion, Shen Shuibi's single remark immediately left him speechless.

"Huh? Ninth-Rank still has a threshold?"

The dazed rabbit tilted her head, asking with some surprise.

Li Qi was stifled, unable to speak, momentarily speechless.

Forget it, there was no point arguing. She was a Fifth-Rank expert; being good-natured didn't mean she lacked capability.

"Miss Shen, thank you so much for this. However, I have one more question I'd like to ask you," Li Qi cupped his hands and gave Shen Shuibi a sincere bow.

He truly had to thank her. Without her, it would indeed be extremely difficult for him to reach Ninth-Rank.

Only by standing at the peak, with a commanding view, could one so easily devise a method for Li Qi to break through to Ninth-Rank using those thirty strands of water qi.

If not for Shen Shuibi, other Fifth-Rank experts might also be able to do it, but why would they help him without compensation?

If he wanted to pay or offer a reward to get them to act, what did Li Qi possess that was valuable enough to warrant them racking their brains over a problem that offered them no benefit whatsoever?Certainly nothing.

Thus, Li Qi was filled with gratitude for Shen Shuibi's help and firmly believed he must find Lady Luofu for her.

Knowing grace, one must repay it.

And the best way to repay Shen Shuibi was to help her find Lady Luofu.

"Oh? What else is there?" Shen Shuibi showed no impatience whatsoever, immediately leaning closer, continuing to listen to whatever doubts Li Qi had.

After all, such occurrences had happened many times. Whether Li Qi was reading the Zhu Book, encountering problems in cultivation, or simply chatting in the wilderness, he often asked Shen Shuibi questions to enhance his experience and knowledge. Shen Shuibi had grown accustomed to Li Qi's inquiries.

"It's about today's matter, regarding that gold piece that had a curse on it,"

Li Qi began to recount all the events he had encountered that day.

Including the matter of Old Lady Wang, their agreement, and the series of things he experienced after dealing with the gold.

After finishing his narration, Li Qi asked: "Miss Shen, does this make sense logically, and in terms of Daoist magic? I've heard that cultivators often possess strange abilities and cannot be judged by common sense."

After hearing these words, Shen Shuibi tilted her head.

"It sounds like there's no problem, but, so Old Horse's past is like that, huh? Why didn't he tell me?" Shen Shuibi didn't concern herself with the truth or falsehood of the matter; instead, she focused on Old Horse.

"His nation was destroyed, his former master died. Such matters are best not brought up proactively, lest they sadden Old Horse needlessly. He hasn't transformed yet, and even if he has gained sentience, his intelligence is limited, so there's no need to mention it," Li Qi said.

"Mm-hmm!" Shen Shuibi nodded, not giving it much more thought.

In reality, she never overthought things; she basically believed whatever Li Qi said.

And Li Qi genuinely felt this way.

Since things had come to this, there was no need to reopen old wounds and make Old Horse feel guilty.

Not having transformed, even with sentience, he didn't possess high intelligence, much like a child. Why demand that he express his sadness?

Li Qi would simply resolve it himself.

Having received Shen Shuibi's affirmation, Li Qi continued to ask how to deal with the enemy.

How should he deal with that ghost, or rather, communicate with it?

But when Shen Shuibi heard this question, she responded with a puzzled counter-question: "You have the divine qi of the two gods Shentu and Yulei. Around your waist, you have that willow branch given by the Great ritual priest. You are also a ritual priest. The ghost should be afraid of you, not the other way around. What are you worried about?"

Well, that made perfect sense.

Having received this affirmation, Li Qi felt at ease.

Then, he continued his cultivation practice.

First practice, then study.

Daily perseverance eventually yielded rewards.

...

The next day, Old Horse and Shen Shuibi were still waiting in the forest, while Li Qi, with his long saber wrapped in cloth disguised as a walking stick, entered the city.

He walked all the way to the vicinity of the Wang family mansion.

But instead of going straight in, he found a small vendor's stall nearby and first bought a woman's hairpin. It was made of copper wire, very pretty, and not expensive, being the craftsmanship of a rural artisan, costing only fifty qian.

After buying the hairpin, Li Qi put it away and used the opportunity to strike up a conversation with the vendor: "Brother, I see this house with stone lions at the gate, it looks so rich, but why is the entrance so deserted, not even a servant sweeping?"

"Ah? You mean the Wang family? Heh, I don't know what happened to them. Their business used to be booming, but it seems like they've been having bad luck every day since last year." The vendor seemed to be a gossip, and when it came to rumors, he became animated.

"Just before the New Year, the Wang family had a batch of goods to send to the provincial capital. They hired the most reliable escort agency, but the goods were robbed on the way! The escort agency was trustworthy, though. They compensated them according to the contract, bought back a batch of goods to replace them, and even paid an extra ten gold coins. But that batch of goods seemed to be time-sensitive and didn't arrive as scheduled. The proprietor in the provincial capital demanded fifty gold coins just for breach of contract! Master Wang cursed loudly outside the escort agency for an hour, causing quite a commotion."

"As for the servants, their servants seemed to have been cursed with bad luck. They kept falling, and the unluckiest one even had his leg run over by a carriage. The Wang family spent forty to fifty thousand qian just on treating these servants' injuries, so they eventually had to dismiss them all."

"If you ask me... this family, they're simply unrighteous rich people, and heaven couldn't stand it!" the vendor said smugly, as if he had done it himself.

"Unrighteous rich people? What bad things did they do to suffer such a heavenly punishment?" Li Qi asked, feigning curiosity.

"Uh... well, it seems they didn't. Old Lady Wang has always been kind, and Master Wang is also an honest person. Their family also distributes porridge every year. But among the rich, how many are truly good? If they were truly good people, how would they have become rich?" the vendor said bluntly.

Li Qi nodded, not lingering on the conversation, just chattering a few more words before taking the hairpin and leaving.

He circled a street and asked a few more neighbors and vendors.

The stories he heard were all similar.

Li Qi was pensive. He circled again, and this time, he arrived outside the Wang family's main gate and knocked.

Old Lady Wang and Master Wang were already waiting behind the door. As soon as he knocked, the door immediately opened.

"Senior Brother, have you had breakfast? This old woman has prepared some small dishes. Would you like to eat before we go to the tomb?" Old Lady Wang greeted him.

"Very well," Li Qi agreed, stepping into the Wang family's main gate.

Indeed, food had already been prepared. What she called "small dishes" was actually quite a lavish spread: meat porridge, egg soup, pickled vegetables, and a plate of fried fish, quite good for breakfast.

Li Qi didn't stand on ceremony and sat down to eat.

"Have you two eaten?" Li Qi asked.

"Yes, we have. Senior Brother, please eat," Old Lady Wang replied.

It was already nearing noon, and the food was slightly cool. Li Qi didn't suspect anything amiss and began to enjoy his breakfast.

...